Fire crews to burn slash piles near Wolcott

SILT, Colo. – Federal fire crews plan to burn slash piles this winter generated by a fuels reduction project on Belly Ache Ridge, about two miles south of the Wolcott/I-70 interchange.

Federal fire crews from the Upper Colorado River Interagency Fire Management Unit created defensible space around a communications site last summer by thinning trees and removing low branches that can carry a fire into the forest canopy. This helps reduce the wildfire threat as well as improve firefighter and public safety.

The resulting slash was piled and allowed to dry. Crews will burn piles when weather conditions are favorable to lift smoke out of the area, beginning as early as next week and potentially continuing through February.

“We’re also waiting for good snow cover before we begin burning,” said Project Leader Ody Anderson. “We have approximately 200 piles to burn.”

Some drift smoke could affect homeowners for a short period of time. Anyone with health conditions that may be affected by short durations of smoke should contact Ody Anderson at (970) 876-9030.

The piles will be burned under the authority of an approved burn plan and smoke permit when moisture in adjacent vegetation is at acceptable levels. The burn operations will occur Monday through Friday only, and will end two hours before sunset.

The BLM manages more than 245 million acres of public land, the most of any Federal agency. This land, known as the National System of Public Lands, is primarily located in 12 Western states, including Alaska. The BLM also administers 700 million acres of sub-surface mineral estate throughout the nation. The BLM's mission is to manage and conserve the public lands for the use and enjoyment of present and future generations under our mandate of multiple-use and sustained yield. In Fiscal Year 2014, the BLM generated $5.2 billion in receipts from public lands.